March is finally here after a long winter in the north. If you’re as excited as I am to get outside and get to gardening, there are a few things you should do first while the ground continues to warm up. Before heading outside, get your gardening tools in order, making sure they are clean, sharp and ready to use.
5 Must-Do Gardening Tips for March
Tip #1: Let the Ground Dry Up
If you live in the north, wait until the snow melts and the ground dries up before tramping all over the garden. Repeatedly walking on wet soil makes it compact and much more difficult to till, especially by hand.
Tip #2: Pick up Debris
After a long winter there’s bound to be some branches, twigs and trash that migrated into the garden. Pick these up and dispose of them in the proper place. Start a mini brush pile and add small twigs to the compost.
Tip #3: Rake, Rake, Rake
I like to wait until the end of March and sometimes April to rake out my garden beds. This way if a hard freeze hits any areas that have perennials, they’ll be well insulated with leaves. Once the leaves are removed, sunlight hits the garden directly, helping to steadily warm soil temperatures.
Tip #4: Add Finished Compost/Composted Manure to the Garden
I like to amend the soil in my garden as soon as possible. Now, since I live in the north and the ground isn’t always completely thawed in March, I sometime have to wait until the following month to till it into the soil. I never use man made fertilizers, only compost and year-old manure to keep my garden as organic as possible.
Tip #5: Give Attention to the Compost Pile
Give the compost a good turning, making sure to work the inside of the pile out. This helps to circulate air, speeding up the decomposition process. It also helps to de-compact the pile which settled over the winter. March is the perfect time to start a new compost pile for the year.
If you haven’t already, March is a good time to order your seeds and plan your garden. I typically know which of my vegetables are going to go where, but actually standing in the garden gives me a better prospective on where things should go.
Do you have any March gardening tips to share?
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Well, March is really a good month to start gardening and plant flowers so choose a good place where you want to install your garden and these tips will also help you with your gardening project.
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